You probably know Cranbrook as a famous school of art and design, and youâ€™re right. For more than 75 years, Cranbrook has been home to some of the worldâ€™s most renowned designers and artists. Eero Saarinen, Charles Eames, Daniel Libeskind, Michael and Katherine McCoy, and Jun Kaneko have all taught here, to name only a few. Our students have included Florence Knoll, Harry Bertoia, Jack Lenor Larsen, Nick Cave, Tony Mattelli, Niels Diffrient, Lorraine Wild, and Hani Rashid. Itâ€™s reasonable to say that the work emanating from Cranbrook in the 20th century changed the way people live, and the way they understand art and design.
This legacy of excellence and innovation lives on at Cranbrook every day. Itâ€™s literally all around us: the Cranbrook campus is 315 acres of rolling, verdant landscape dotted with the art of Carl Milles, Mark di Suvero, and Michael Hall, and defined by the brilliant planning and architecture of Eliel Saarinen, the famed Finnish architect who helped bring Cranbrook to life. In later years, Saarinenâ€™s buildings have been supplemented by masterworks by Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, Rafael Moneo, and Steven Holl, among others. Not surprisingly, the entire campus has been designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The Academy shares this remarkable home with two other institutions: the Cranbrook Institute of Science and the Cranbrook Schools. Along with dozens of the Schoolsâ€™ teachers, the Academyâ€™s Artists-in-Residence all reside on campus alongside many of our students. We work here, we live here, and we play here. In other words, Cranbrook is far more than just a place to go to school; it is a community. Whether you are making art in your studio (all Academy of Art students are assigned their own personal studio space), swimming at the Williams Natatorium, attending a lecture in deSalle auditorium, or simply relaxing along the Triton pools in front of the Cranbrook Art Museum (where the work of Academy students and leading artists are both on display), youâ€™ll find Cranbrook is an environment that has been specifically tailored to support your growth as an artist, and as a productive member of society.